Portret van Christoph Daniel Schreiter 1714 - 1733

This is Martin Bernigeroth’s portrait of Christoph Daniel Schreiter, made using etching and engraving techniques. The portrait situates Schreiter, a Doctor of Theology, within the rigid social and religious structures of the 17th and 18th centuries. Looking at Schreiter, we see the symbols of his position and faith: the clerical robe, the weighty tome inscribed with Hebrew text, and the looming crucifix. These details tell us of a society where religious identity was both a personal conviction and a very public declaration of one's place in the world. The Latin phrases inscribed below the portrait speak to a personal creed intertwined with a universal belief in God. Portraits like this were more than just images; they were affirmations of social order, where identity was carefully constructed through symbols of faith, knowledge, and status. Consider how Schreiter's image, rendered in the precise lines of the engraving, invites us to reflect on the interplay between individual spirituality and the structures of societal expectations.